THE Sharks put a venomous bite on Bristol to secure their first appearance in the Premiership play-offs for 15 years as the fans returned to the AJ Bell Stadium.
Sale repelled everything the Bears threw at them in a bone-crunching 0-0 first half which showed that rugby doesn't need a tryfest to be absorbingly nail-biting.
Then they turned the tide, scoring three tries in a ten-minute spell after Bristol's Semi Radradra was sin-binned as they won the battle off the bench to leave Bristol still needing to ensure a home play-off semi-final.
Despite seeing his side beaten, Bears director of rugby Pat Lam said: “It was bone-crunching and physical –a pleasure to watch.”
Jean-Luc du Preez was named man of the match but that prize could have gone to any one of the Sale pack's back five who produced 65 tackles between them.
Defiant under fire in the first half, they turned the tables after Bristol broke the deadlock with an outstanding try four minutes into the second period.
Max Malins counterattacked from inside his own half, Radrada brushed off Faf de Klerk and Charles Piutau drew Luke James before releasing Ben Earl down the left touchline.
Sale responded by producing their replacements, led by England powerhouse Manu Tuilagi, returning after seven months out with Achilles trouble.
The emergence of Tuilagi had a galvernising effect both on the crowd of 2,500 and his own teammates.
However, his clash of the threequarter giants with Radradra lasted only ten minutes before the Bristol man was yellowcarded after committing two high challenges in the same Sale attack – and it could have been red.
After binning the Fijian for the second, which halted replacement scrumhalf Raffi Quirke's breakaway Ridley looked long and hard at a replay of the first before deciding that the hit on AJ MacGinty merited only a penalty as initial contact was on the shoulder before riding up to the neck and chin area.
Two yellows and the resulting red could have stopped Radradra's season reaching its climax.
Bristol were shipping penalties now and a quick tap produced four surges which ended with Dan du Preez battling his way over.
Three minutes later MacGinty's cross-kick found Scotland winger
Byron McGuigan and he collected without breaking stride before releasing Rob du Preez, who had been on the pitch for only three minutes, for the try.
Sale's ambition in spurning the penalty which would have taken them more than a score clear was rewarded with a lineout drive, reinforced as backs Tuilagi, du Preez and Marland Yarde piled in, took replacement hooker Curtis Langdon over the line.
Bristol responded with another quality try as Charles Piutau found Welsh youngster Ioan Lloyd who sent Sale's defenders the wrong way, feinting to go inside before switching back to the outside to score in the corner.
But MacGinty's late penalty pushed the game beyond the Bears' reach and all those fans and pundits expecting a two-horse Bristol-Exeter title race should keep a serious eye on a Sale side coming up on the rails.
“We are building but we are not peaking yet,” was the ominous warning from boss Alex Sanderson.
Sale ………………..22pts
Tries: D du Preez 60, R du Preez 63, Langdon 70
Conversions: MacGinty 63, 70
Penalties: MacGinty 77
SALE: L James 6 (R du Preez 59, 8); McGuigan 7, S James 6, Doherty 6 (Tuilagi 48, 7), Yarde 6; MacGinty 8, De Klerk 7 (Quirke 55, 7); Rodd 6 (Morozov 60, 6), Van der Merwe 7 (Langdon 56, 7), Oosthuizen 7 (Harper 67, 7), Wiese 7 (Phillips 40, 7), JL du Preez 9, T Curry (c) 8, B Curry 8 (Neild 58, 7), D du Preez 8
Bristol …… ………. 12pts
Tries: Earl 44, Lloyd 73
Conversions: Sheedy 73
BRISTOL: C Piutau 7; Morahan (Lloyd 2, 7), Radradra 7, O'Conor 7, Malins 6; Sheedy 7, Uren 6; Woolmore 7 (Thomas 50, 6), Kerr 7 (Thacker 55, 6), Sinckler 6 (Chaparro 55, 6), Attwood 6 (Holmes 65, 5), Vui (c) 6, Harding 6, Earl 7, Hughes 7 (Heenan 71)
Not used: Kessell, S Piutau
REFEREE: Christophe Rdley
ATTENDANCE: 2,500
Star man: Jean-Luc du Preez – Sale
